This beautiful 18 inch wide by 24 inch tall poster celebrates the legend of how Pandas received their black markings.

Long time ago, pandas were pure white without their distinctive markings. In the Wolong Valley was a shepherdess that used to watch her flock during the day. A young panda came daily to play with the sheep, perhaps mistaking one of them for his own. One day, a leopard attacked the panda cub. The girl picked up a stick to beat the cat off the cub. The cub escaped, but the girl was killed.

​ At her funeral, the pandas came to mourn her. They spread ashes on their limbs, as was the custom. They hugged each other, they rubbed their eyes as they cried, and when the weeping became too loud, they covered their ears. And everywhere they touched themselves turned black permanently, giving them their signature black and white color.